Former Rome mayor Gianni Alemanno freed from Rebibbia, denounces Meloni over prison crisis

Release and first words

Gianni Alemanno, the 68-year-old former mayor of Rome, left the Rebibbia prison on Wednesday morning after spending 1 year, 5 months and 24 days behind bars. He had been detained since the evening of 31 December 2024 for violating surveillance obligations linked to a definitive conviction for influence peddling in the ‘Middle World’ probe.

“I leave prison as an innocent man.”

As he exited, about 100 supporters greeted him with chants of “Gianni, Gianni” and a forest of Celtic cross necklaces on display. Moments later he directed his fire at the prime minister, saying Giorgia Meloni’s government “has done nothing” about prison overcrowding.

Inside Rebibbia: the prison diary

From the moment of his arrest on New Year’s Eve 2024, Alemanno documented his time inside through an online ‘cell diary’, describing chronic overcrowding and understaffing that have been linked to high inmate suicide rates across Italy. Speaking to journalists under a tree in a garden in the Tiburtino district after his release, he recalled seeing nothing but “reinforced concrete and armoured glass” for nearly two years.

“A shame for the Republic, an insult given the way people are treated there.”

He said the experience had changed him, teaching him calmness and a deeper understanding of human variety and need. “I am a different person now, and perhaps a better one,” he remarked, adding that prison had shown him the futility of political propaganda and the urgency of reform.

Political future and the Vannacci dinner

Hours after his release, Alemanno joined Roberto Vannacci, leader of the newly formed Futuro Nazionale party, for a dinner at a Sardinian restaurant in northern Rome. Vannacci, a former general and MEP who had already absorbed Alemanno’s Indipendenza movement into his own party, embraced the ex-mayor warmly before they sat down with a table of Futuro Nazionale parliamentarians.

Earlier, Massimo Arlechino, president of Indipendenza, had placed a gold chain with a Celtic cross back around Alemanno’s neck during a celebration at a Roman pizzeria. Asked about his ambitions, Alemanno insisted he was not seeking any candidacy in 2027 or a parliamentary seat. “I am only here to serve,” he said. “I have no strange hopes.”

“I am not looking for a parliamentary seat and I don’t agree with him on everything.”

He nevertheless described Vannacci as the person “who breaks the mould and opens a different perspective.”

A broken promise to the sovereignist right

Alemanno saved some of his sharpest criticism for the Meloni executive, declaring that the prime minister had “disappointed the sovereignists” and that her biggest mistake was refusing to talk with others. He pledged to request a meeting with Justice Minister Carlo Nordio to discuss the prison system.

“Meloni has disappointed the sovereignists.”

Although he and Vannacci differ on issues such as remigration and tougher penalties pushed by the centre-right, Alemanno signalled he would continue his political engagement from within Futuro Nazionale, offering his experience and analytical skills. “If she feels like talking,” he said of Meloni, “she can call Vannacci, and Vannacci will certainly be available.”